Means to operate car-doors, &amp;c.



L. E. HOLGOMB.

MAEAN T O OPERATE CAB DOORS, ac.

APPLICATION man Mm, 915.

Patented MM, 1918.

wziantoi wi/t'nemo V GU01 mug iii LEONARD E. HOLGOMB, OFASH'IABULA, OHIO.

MEANS TO OPERATE CAR-DOORS, 850.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 26, 1918.

Application filed May 27, 1915. Serial No. 80,848.

ate Oar-Doors, &c., of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to mechanism for operating doors on railway cars and other structures by the utilization of compressed air from the train line or from an independent source, as the case may be.

The main object of my invention is toprovide the car or other body with a door having locking means, means to move the' door to a closed position beyond a locking position, and mans for then sl1ghtly returning the do r to operate the locking means to a locked position.v

Another object is to provide such mechanism which, when the door is in either a closed or open position, will serve as cushion means to obviate jarring thereof and the consequent breakage of the latch and hangers, during the switching of the car.

Another object is to provide means operable by one of the shock absorbers for automatically locking the door.

A further object is to provide mechanism as set forth, which is readily attachable to conventional forms of cars and similar structures and which will not necessitate the modification of the car construction to permit such attachment.

A still further object is toprovide mechanism of this character that is exceedingly simple in construction and which consists of a few parts, whereby it is believed that the same may be manufactured at a comparatively low cost.

' Various other objects and advantages will become apparent during thecontinuance of the following description.

The above and other objects which will become apparent are accomplished by such means as are shown in their preferred form in the accompanying drawings, described in the following specification and then more s ecifically pointed out in the appended c aims. y

In the accompanying drawings wherein like characters designate like parts throughout the several views;

a the body of the respective cylinders.

Fi re 1 is a side elevation of a conventiona form of body such as used for box cars showing my invention in place thereon.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view of my invention showing the same having connection with a portion of the cardoor.

Fi 3 is a perspective view of a latch mem )er which is employed.

Fig. 4 is a similar view showing a fastening element that is also used.

In the drawings A designates the car body upon which the door B is slidably mounted through the medium of the hangers C. However as set forth above this construction is merely shown in order to facili: tate a complete illustration and description of my lnventlon and therefore it is to be understood that the latter is not limited to use in connection therewith.

In reducing my invention to practice the car body is equipped with a pair of opposite cylinders 10 and 11 which are supported thereon by suitable brackets 12. The opposite ends of the cylinders are in turn provided with removable heads 13 and 14 through which pass piston rods 15 and 16 carrying piston heads 17 which operate Iiln '1 e rods are fixed to the respective vertical edges of the door B by any suitable means and assuming that the door is in a closed position as in Fig. 1, the rod 15 will be in its innermost position within the cylinder 10 while the rod 16 assumes its outermost position with respect to the cylinder 11.

Now, in consistence with the foregoing, that is with respect to the provision of cushion means, the respective cylinders are provided with elastic elements 18 (see Fig. 2). When the door is in a closed position the piston head in the cylinder 10 will engage the adjacent and elastic member so that the latter will take up the shocks and jars transmitted to the door. However when the door is in an open position, the piston head in the cylinder 11 will engage the respective elastic element in that cylinder, and in this case the respective elastic ele- Inent will serve as the shock absorber.

Pipes 19 and 20 have connection at one 105 end to the cylinders 10 and 11, respectively, while their other ends communicate with another pipe 21 from the train line. The

passage of air of the pipe 21 to the other pipes 19 and 20 may be controlled through the medium of valves 22 and 23. However, other valves 24 and 25 are provided to permit the escape of air from the pipes 19 and 20 independently of one another.

A latch construction is also shown which consists of a fastenin member 26 which is positioned at a suitable point on the door B and which is provided with an eyelet 27 for engagement with a similar eyelet 28 of. the hasp 29. The hasp body is provided with a T-shaped slot or aperture 30 for reception of the fastening member 31, on the car body. This form of slot permits slight movement of the door beyond its normal closing position, so as to relieve the strain therefrom so that the shocks transmitted to the door will be completely absorbed by the elastic elements 18. This slot also allows the door to be locked by and released from the member 26. A second slot 32 is also provided in the hasp for the reception of the fastening member 31 if occasion demands. It will also be noted that this latch member will be automatically locked through the medium of the cooperation of the shock absorber or spring 18, in the cylinder 10, when the door is returned b the spring18 to its normal closing posit1on. To be more explicit, when the door B is moved into its closing position the air within the cylinder 11 cooperates with the piston rod 16 to carry the door to its over-closed position and-hold it there until the pressure is relieved in the pipe 20. While the door is in this over-closed position, the piston head 17 of the cylinder 10, is held firmly against the adjacent shock absorber 18; and now, the latch 29 may be "manually operated preparatory to being moved into its locking relation with the element 31. This preparatory operation consists in swinging the hasp on its support 27,

- and causing the head element 31 to pass through the opening 30 of the hasp; and now, when pressure is released in the cylinder .11 and the pipe 20, the shock absorber 18 of the cylinder 10 forces the adjacent piston head 17 toward the cylinder head 13, thus moving the door a suflicient distance to bring the shank of the fastening member 31 into engagement with the portion of the T-shaped slot that extends longitudinally of the hasp, and thereby securely locks the door in its normal closing position.

In the operation of this mechanism assuming that the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, and that all the valves are closed, air from the train lines may be admitted to the pipe 19 by opening the valve 22. The pressure of the air enterlng the cylinder 10 will cause the piston head 17 to seek the opposite end of the cylinder and thus cause the door to move to an open position, through the medium of the rod 15. However, the valve 25 must be opened before the door can move to its fully open position, be-

019 and cylinder 10 will be relieved. Like wise, by closing the valves 22 and 25, and opening the valve 23, the closing of the door may be accomplished. The air pressure in the cylinder 11 must be sufficient to overcome the resistance of the spring 18, so as to force thedoor past the normal closing position, "so that the hasp 29 can be engaged with the keeper 31. Then, upon opening the valve 25, the spring 18 moves the door to its normal closing position, thereby moving the hasp to bring it into the cooperative relation with the fastenin member 31 for locking the (Loor, as explained in a foregoing paragrap From the foregoin it is believed that the advantages and nove features of my invention will be readily recognized and a further description is deemed unnecessary.

In reducing my invention to practice I find that the form referred to herein is the most efficient, but realizing that certain conditions will necessarily vary in concurrence with the adoption of my device, I desire to emphasize the fact that various minor changes in the details of construction and in the proportion of parts maybe resorted to when required without sacrificing any of the advantages of my invention as defined in the ap ended claims.

avin thus fully described my invention, what I cfiim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination of a door, means for moving the door slightly past its normal closing position, a manually operable locking element for the door, and means to return the door to its normal closing position, said lockin element being so constructed as to be unloc able when the door is in its normal closing position. v

2. The combination of a door, means for moving the door slightly past its normal closing position, a manually operable locking e ement for the door, and automatic means to return the door to its normal closing position, said lockin element being so constructed as to be an ockable when the door is in its normal closing position.

3. The combination of a door, means for moving the door slightly past its normal closing position, a manually operable locking element for the door, and means to ab sorb the shock of the door when it closes, and to return the door to its normal closing position, said locking element being so constructed as to be unlockable when the door is in its normal closing position.

4. The combination of a door, means for moving the door slightly past its normal closing position, a manually operable lockand door returning means, and means cooperative with said shock-absorbing and door returning means for,locking the door 15 when the latter is returned to its normal closingposition by said shock-absorb in and door-returnin means.

11 testimonywhereo I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LEONARD E. HOLCOMB. Witnesses H. Z. DAVIS, Homsnn P. SMITH. 

